Can everyone in New Mexico’s cannabis industry stay afloat? State officials told lawmakers Wednesday that while sales revenues are still high, issues like the oversupply of cannabis have made for a hazy outlook. State data shows New Mexico has about as many cannabis retailers as Colorado, and officials say it’s making it hard for smaller ‘mom and pop’ retailers to survive.
“Just if you come down San Mateo, there is probably about 15 from Menaul to the end of where Osuna is, about 15 dispensaries,” says Julieta Neas, one of the owners of Amnesia Dispensary and Accessories, “At this point, when you look at the numbers through the RLD there are over 1,000 dispensaries. So, it’s, yeah, it’s affecting business.”
Neas is describing what lawmakers are now hearing about the oversaturation of the state’s cannabis market. “While the revenue, the total revenue for the industry continues to grow, the average cart size and the average monthly revenue per licensed retailer continues to decrease,” says Ben Lewinger, executive director of the New Mexico Cannabis Chamber of Commerce. Lewinger says there are 1,021 cannabis retailers—roughly the same as Colorado, which has nearly three times New Mexico’s population.
“New Mexico is very likely overproducing cannabis,” Lewinger says. New Mexico’s cannabis chamber says there are ten producers in the state supplying almost half of what local consumers are demanding. That, and the continued illegal sale of cannabis, is putting small retail operations in a tough spot.
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